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Jun

9

The AP Stylebook: Get it now!

June 9, 2007 |

If you write for newspapers—or if you write copy for newsletters, magazines, e-zines or Web sites—the Associated Press Stylebook is a must-have resource. You just can’t do the job without it.

The 2007 edition has hit the stands, and I can’t wait to nab it. It’s a cheap thrill: You can pick up a hard copy for less than $20 directly from the AP Stylebook Web site, or you can order it from your favorite online bookstore. You can also subscribe to AP’s online edition for $25 per year.

Why do you need the AP Stylebook? Because writing standards for newspapers and magazines are different from standards for other types of writing. So you’d better know your stuff.

Some AP Stylebook variations include

  • Using those “old-fashioned” state abbreviations in text: Ala., Conn., N.H.
  • Cutting the comma before “Jr.” and “Sr.” in a name: Martin Luther King Jr.
  • Using AP-preferred spellings: “Web site” and “Web page,” not “website” and “webpage”

AP also uses Webster’s New World College Dictionary as its “first reference for spelling, style and usage.” You might want to pick up a copy of that, too, while you’re at it.

The AP Stylebook has been around for more than 50 years, and it just keeps getting better.

Kinda like some of us.